Single pole circuit breakers are often combined to provide multiple pole circuit breakers having two, three or four poles. The individual handles of each of the single pole circuit breakers are typically connected by a handle tie so that all of the handles then operate simultaneously.
The prior art includes a number of different handle tie structures. The most common type of handle tie is an elongated box-shaped structure open along one long side so that the ends of the handles may be received within the box. With these prior art apparatus, the handle tie effectively lengthens the handle by at least the thickness of a wall of the box-shaped handle tie. Such handle ties are attached to the handles by any number of means, including deformed metal tabs, cylindrical pins, button-shaped protrusions which fit in holes in the handles, and the like. These box-shaped handle ties often include windows through which the amperage designation on the outermost end of the handle can be viewed, but the handle does not extend entirely through the handle tie on any of these prior designs.
Although these prior art handle tie structures do effectively join the handles of the circuit breakers so that they operate simultaneously, they have the disadvantage that the handle tie structure protrudes outwardly from the outermost end of the handles, and sometimes interferes with the proper fit of the circuit breaker within an enclosure in which the circuit breaker is received.